Happy Friday! One of the many joys of working in an elementary school is seeing those times when students come together to share experiences with other students. While this happens on a daily basis on a smaller scale in classrooms at every grade level, we were lucky enough to have two larger opportunities for this to occur this week. You can read more about our All-School Assembly to celebrate Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and the Bowen Winter Concert in the event recaps below! We hope that your children are sharing these experiences with you at home. Be sure and ask! As we head into the long weekend, please take time for rest, relaxation, and fun after a busy week at school. Thank you for everything you do to support your children, and we will see you on Tuesday morning!

Yours truly,

Diana & Tiffany

News You Need to Know

All-School Assembly Recap

This morning, students and staff gathered in the gym for an assembly to celebrate the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. 5th grade Student Council members skillfully presented a “Bowen News Report Broadcast” with live reports from various events in the Civil Rights Movement. Kindergarteners, 3rd graders, and 4th graders shared musical performances related to Dr. King, and student representatives from each grade shared their hopes and dreams with everyone. As students left the gym, they heard the words of Dr. King himself from his speech delivered at the March on Washington in 1963. A heartfelt “thank you” goes out to everyone who helped bring this together...it was a powerful way to start the day!

Bowen Winter Concert Recap

Thursday was a musical kind of day! On Thursday afternoon, our 3rd graders enjoyed a preview of their future as musicians at Bowen School as they watched the String Ensemble, 5th Grade Band, 4th Grade Chorus, and 5th Grade Chorus perform selections from their evening concert program. Our student performers came back to Bowen on Thursday evening to play and sing for a PACKED house of parents, siblings, family, and friends. The kids showed off all their hard work and finished the night with big smiles on their faces. The “buzz” after the last note was that the evening was a great success! Thank you to Mr. Haywood and Mr. Cutler for putting it all together!

Lost and Found

Is your child missing their mittens? A hat? Miscellaneous items of clothing? Come and check out the items that have been collected in the lost & found bin! They have been temporarily laid out on a table in the Bowen lobby to make it easier to quickly spot what you’re looking for. Take a look!

Incoming Kindergarten Registration

Are you the parent of a child who will be entering Kindergarten next year? Do you know of someone else who has a child who will be joining our Bowen community for the 2016-2017 school year? We are gathering the names of incoming kindergarteners in order to invite parents to the Bowen Kindergarten Information Night which will be held on Thursday, February 25th. Please let the office know if you have the name of any incoming kindergarten student. Additional details about the Kindergarten Information Night and Kindergarten registration dates will be mailed to families whose names are on the list, so please let the office know!

Responsive Home Workshop for ELL Families

Mark your calendars! On Thursday, February 4th from 6:30-8:30 p.m., please join other ELL Families for a workshop to focus on how parents and guardians can use Responsive Classroom practices to create a calm, supportive, and encouraging environment at home. Topics will include Family Meeting, House Rules, Interactive Modeling, Positive Language, Logical Consequences, Choice, and Quiet Time. This workshop will be taught by Amy Kelly, District Leader of Social & Emotional Learning in Newton.

Childcare and interpreters are available upon request. If you plan to attend, please contact Dianna Kobayashi at 617-559-6045 or Dianna_Kobayashi@newton.k12.ma.us. This workshop will be held in Room 210 at the Education Center, 100 Walnut Street, in Newton. Please join us!

Reminder - Celebrating Martin Luther King, Jr.

Our Bowen community is working on new ways to better celebrate the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Here are two ways that you can be a part of this endeavor!

Visit Bowen and check out our interactive display in the hallway leading toward the gym. There are various quotes from Dr. King posted for everyone to read and think about. We have also posted large pieces of chart paper for visitors to share their thoughts, reactions, and reflections about Dr. King’s famous words.

2) On Monday, January 18th at 10:00 a.m., please join Mayor Setti Warren for the Martin

Luther King, Jr. Newton Community Celebration, first established in 1968. The Community Celebration was founded by members of the Myrtle Baptist Church as a means of remembering the civil rights leader in the context of a community celebration of his life and the ideals he strove to achieve for all people. This is a family event with a large attendance with music & short recitations by students from the Newton Public Schools. This year’s event will be held at Our Lady Help of Christians Parish at 573 Washington Street in Newton.

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